Dyril
Dyril was a Wood-elf of Mirkwood who lived during the Third Age. She became a wanderer and adopted a somewhat nomadic lifestyle, something that made her stand out amongst the Elves of Middle Earth. Biography Early Life Born approximately in the year TA 2391, all information about Dyril's family remains relatively unknown, although it is known that she is an only child. As an infant, she highly educated herself in singing and music, a trait encouraged by Legolas Greenleaf himself. Life as an Explorer At some point after reaching maturity, Dyril, who had a tremendous desire to walk the world independently and had no interest in a family of her own, bid goodbye to her loved ones and ventured out of Mirkwood. She began to travel Middle-Earth freely, and would only stay in random settlements for a brief time before setting off again. She also became known for singing a Quenyan lullaby in nights of full moon. Because of this, people who heard her singing began to call her the Wanderer and the Nocturnal. Several Journeys One of the many sites she explored were the Iron Hills, for she had an interest in the culture of the Dwarves. Although they were distrustful because she was en elf, the then Lord Grór was touched by her beauty and her sincere astonishment for the Dwarves' talents, and allowed her to stay. During her brief residence in the hills, she became familiarized with axe combat. After a few days, she finally departed, but not before Grór presented her with a gift: a double battle axe fabricated especially for her. It was stated that she wanted to take strolls through the eastern regions, but she was hesitant, as people of the east were known supporters of Mordor. A Target of Harlu One full moon night, in TA 2940, Dyril was roaming the Old Forest Road, singing to her tune as usual. Before she could finish, however, she was distracted by strange noises and was subsequently attacked by Harlu, an Uruk-hai from Mordor that had long left Sauron's service and now terrorized Middle-Earth, killing everyone in his path out of mere lust for blood. Although she was able to defend herself, she was out-dueled and pinned down, until Radgast the Brown and Beorn, both of whom heard all the commotion, interfered and drove the Orc away. Both Beorn and Radagast gave her housing while she recovered from the attack, and during her stay with them, she learned stories from their younger days. Radagast would also give her an elven ring that had the power to cast illusions should she ever need to. She would ultimately leave again when she recuperated. From then on, Harlu would continue to stalk and toy with Dyril while she continued her voyages. They would go on to engage in duels on three different occasions, all of them in which she was able to fight him on more equal terms, but still remained unable to defeat him. Friend of a Dragon At some point, Dyril reached one of the many settlements of Men in Dunland. There they asked her for assistance, for they long have trouble with a dragon living on the Misty Mountains. Entering the lair of the beast, she discovered a dragon of relatively small size for his kin, and to her surprise, he was not a malicious being. Although he did have the usual greed for treasures, the one he guarded was discovered by him in the First Age, long before Dunland had even been populated, therefore making his riches rightfully his, and he only attacked the men, because they constantly tried to steal from him. During their time together, they both empathized with each other as she sang and played a golden flute to entertain him. She was finally able to convince him to halt his assaults, on the condition that the men would stop their burglaries. When she tried to reason with the leader of the settlement, he refused to cooperate. In anger, she cast a fake illusion showing him the dragon destroying him and his people, showing what could happen if they didn't leave the creature alone. Terrorized, he finally relented. Having reached news of her interaction with the creature, several Elves would come to call her Amlug Mellon, which means "Dragon-Friend". Sometime later, she would meet a forger in Bree, and asked him to forge her a dragon-shaped pendant. Although shocked by the petition, the craftsman granted her wish. Quest for Erebor Aside from her wandering, Dyril at one point became a member of the White Council, and constantly kept them updated on any unusual activity from around Middle-Earth. During this time, she grew to dislike Saruman due to his inflexibility and tendency to insult Radagast, as well as what she perceived to be a lack of willingness to act. When Saruman finally agreed to attack Dol Guldur, she accompanied the rest of the Council and the elven army. The battle resulted in a victory for them, and Sauron was expelled from the fortress, causing him to flee back to Mordor. She also participated in the Battle of Five Armies, arriving as a reinforcement alongside the Great Eagles and Beorn. During the fight, she encountered Harlu, who had joined the fight killing both Free People and dark creatures. They engaged in what would be the last of their duels, clashing fiercely until both lost consciousness after falling into a wagon in Dale. As the battle ended and the surviving orcs fled the mountain, Harlu regained consciousness and attempted to kill several of the recuperating elven soldiers, as well as Thranduil himself. As he prepared to strike, he cast an illusion on him, taking his mind of his objective. Taking advantage of his distraction, Dyril was able to flip over him and bring him down through a spear stuck on a fallen man, killing him and ending his sadistic tendencies once and for all. This victory would make people know her as the Bane of Harlu. War of the Ring Dyril remained an active member of the Council during the War of the Ring, continuing her traveling while keeping an eye for Sauron and his armies. She, like the rest of the members of the Council, was informed of Saruman's treason by Gandalf, but unlike the rest of the councilors, she was not surprised, as she had already suspected it for a time. She did not participate openly in many of the battles fought, but she once mentioned to have occasionally encountered and fought several orcs and even easterlings on the road. During the last days of the war, she learned that forces from Dol Guldur had attacked both Lothlórien and Mirkwood, but both realms were ultimately able to fight off the invaders. She would ultimately rush to join her fellow elves in the final assault on the old fortress, which resulted in its destruction at the hands of Lady Galadriel of Lórien. At the same time, the One Ring was destroyed, and Sauron was finally ended. Fourth Age After Sauron's defeat, Dyril was present in Minas Tirith for the coronation of Aragorn II and his wedding with Lady Arwen. Due to the fact that some easterlings still remained a threat to Gondor, she participated in several of the king's campaigns to hunt them down, and with the downfall of Mordor, she was finally free to explore several Eastern regions without much danger. Having accomplished her wishes of exploring the land, Dyril did not return to Mirkwood nor did she join the elves on Ithilien. Rather, she took residence in Bree, a decision that, unsurprisingly, no one ever fully understood. It would not be until FO 118 that she finally left Middle-Earth and joined the rest of her kin in Valinor. Character Throughout her life, Dyril was often said to be the most unusual Elf to ever exist, as well as one of the strangest individuals in the history of Arda. Similarly to other Elves, Dyril possessed a great beauty that was able to entrance even the Dwarf Lord Grór. Her most notorious trait was her hair, which was of an abnormal purple hue. She usually kept it in two plaits and decorated it with wild flowers from the outskirts of Mirkwood. Often was it rumored that her unnatural hair color was related to her also peculiar attitude. She had a fondness for wearing dark clothing. Her way of living and ambitions were uncommon enough to raise confusion and curiosity in every single race of Middle Earth, elves included. It was said that whenever someone asked her about a certain lifestyle choice, she would reply by questioning why she shouldn't carry it out. Others were not just weirded out, but downright looked down on her for her life. She herself was unbothered by this, and was quite comfortable with calling herself 'the most bizarre She-Elf the world has ever known'. She was an Elf that deeply valued knowledge and was very interested in different cultures from around the land, which was the main factor that inspired her to become a voyager. In addition, she had a very particular love for the night and music, the biggest reason of why she always sang her lullaby to the full moon. Unlike most Elves, Dyril did not hold animosity towards Dwarves, and was rather impressed by their strong, indomitable will, and their rather fine mining and crafting skills. She was able to earn the sympathy of Grór, despite the rejection from all his subjects, and he himself taught her how to use an axe, and also had one fabricated for her. This marked one of the scarce times in which an Elf and a Dwarf were able to get along. Nonetheless, she did feel frustration when it came to dealing with their stubbornness and somewhat unreasonable mentality. Her sympathy and kindness also allowed her to understand and dissuaded a dragon from constantly attacking a unknown settlement of men, although it should be noted that that particular dragon was relatively not malicious, therefore making it easier for her to get into conversation with him. In spite of her rather friendly demeanor, Dyril did possess a shadier side to herself, as she was shamelessly antagonistic towards those she disliked. She held absolutely no respect for Thranduil, and refused to call him her king until he had finally proven to have a heart. She also disapproved the way Saruman led the White Council, and was secretly suspicious of him. Her suspicions were proven to be true when Gandalf confirmed his treachery. Other individuals she viewed with contempt were the Master of Lake-Town, the Men of Dunland, and Denethor II. Weapons and abilities Dyril possessed the typical abilities of her race, as well as the natural agility of the Silvan Elves. She was a highly skilled combatant and was very fierce and aggressive, capable of holding her own against numerous foes, even the Nazgûl during the battle of Dol Guldur. Her talent also allowed her to survive five encounters with the Uruk-hai Harlu, although she was practically unable to overcome him, due to his superior strength, and was only able to kill him due to a distraction. As a result of wearing her enchanted ring, Dyril had the power to cast mighty illusions for a vast array of purposes. She was able to convince the Men of Dunland to leave the dragon on the hill alone by showing them what could happen if they kept pestering him. She was also able to disorient Harlu enough to finally bring death to him. It is also revealed that her illusions could render her invisible to most of the races' eyes. In spite of that, highly powerful beings, such as Gandalf, Galadriel, and the''' 'Nazgûl could see through her guise. She also theorized that Sauron himself could detect her, but she never tried to confirm it. Unlike most Elves, Dyril preferred to fight with axes and carried a double battle axe made of fir and mithril, which was made specially for her. Etymology The name ''Dyril stands for "Dark Female", from the Sindarin word dûr ''("sombre, dark") and il ''("female"). Category:Characters Category:Female Characters Category:Females Category:Elves Category:Silvan Elves Category:Wood-elves of Mirkwood Category:White Council